Burned and Burning
by A.S.112
Summary: The renowned love story told in the 21st century at a suburban high school in New York while keeping a little of that Disney magic. Technically, yes, another retelling. Full summary inside.
1. Once Upon A Time

Once upon a time, in the 21st century, a boy named Adam with a perfect life with his parents vanished from beneath his feet at age 9 when his parents were killed in one of the World Trade Centers on 9/11 when they went on an important business trip. He was sent to live with his Aunt Brianna, his godmother and mother's sister in suburban New York a little north of the Big Apple. Adam turned rotten, stubborn and easily angered after the tragedy. His aunt tried all the methods she could think of to teach him a lesson and change his behavior, but with no avail.

One weekend, she took him camping near the Canadian border, thinking he needed to get away from society itself. But, to her disappointment, it only aggravated Adam. As they sat around a campfire one night, Adam complained about their surroundings, the cold; the odd, annoying noises, the bugs, anything he could think of. Tired of his constant, unending flow of bitterness and negativity, Brianna went to sleep in the tent, reminding Adam to put out the fire out before going to sleep. As the silence crept around and he heard his aunt snore, clearly unconscious, Adam only stared at the fire and prayed for this "vacation" to be over.

Suddenly, out of the gloom of the trees, a woman with dirty, tattered clothes, a shabby hat and a scarf wrapped around her nose and mouth stepped towards the fire. Adam stood up with narrowed eyes as she approached. She asked if she can sit by the fire for a little while to warm her chilled limbs. Adam forbade her to go near and to make her own "hobo" fire in an oil drum. She tried to convince him but he still refused to allow her to sit on a log across from him, for he didn't want to look at some bedraggled old hag.

She then stripped all the dirty clothes, hat and scarf to show her beautiful, bright white dress, her long flaxen, curly and lustrous hair, perfectly shaped lips and defined chin from beneath. Adam was so surprised that all he could do was stare, but after he regained his senses he apologized to what appeared to be a model standing before him and invited her to sit down if she wanted to.

She denied the offer and said, "I've been watching from afar ever since your parents' tragic end. Believe it or not, but I'm an angel sent to check on you and see if you really are as rotten as they say. Turns out that they were right. Unfortunately for you, I'm an angel of karma. Can you see where this is going?"

Adam made a movement to alert his aunt in her tent but she held up a hand and he froze on the spot, unable to move a muscle. "Not so fast. You need to face your punishment first. What I'm about to do will cause you inexplicable pain and will scar you in the process. But I'll give you a chance to redeem yourself: If you can make someone fall in love with you in your high school years, despite your horrible appearance and nasty temper, I will erase the scar from you as if it never was. But you must have someone fall in love with you _in_ high school. I don't care if you have to fail to stay there, but you have to feel love from another before you're 21. You got that?"

Adam couldn't nod, much less move, so he just stood there.

"Good," she said satisfactorily. "Now for your punishment. Brace yourself."

She closed her fist and he fell forward into the campfire. As soon as he hit the fire, the spell was lifted and he could move; he thrashed instantly as he felt the intense heat go from his face to his chest to his legs as it spread through his clothes. He screamed and rolled out of the fire, running to the river past the tent and diving in right into the thankfully nearby water, feeling the relief spread through his limbs as the water doused the fires and cooled his skin. He was able to crawl onto the shore before he passed out on the spot.

He woke up to florescent lighting and the beeping of a heart monitor. As he gradually woke up he realized he suffered third degree burns on half of his body and will be scarred for the rest of his life.

Devastated and eager for someone to take the blame, he tried to tell his aunt that a woman pushed him into the flames, but with no gain—from anyone. Everyone he tried to convince wouldn't believe him if he spoke of how he got the burns unless he said it was "a campfire accident."

Finally, one day he was able to convince not one, but three others that an angel of karma forced him into the campfire and that he must find someone to fall in love with him before the end of high school: his father's sister's daughter, his cousin, Annie along with her friends Jean-Luc and Cameron. Despite how Adam has ignored Annie and disrespected her ever since his parents' death simply because of an age difference, Annie somehow felt obligated to help him in his seemingly desperate time of need, convincing her friends to help too.

And so they agreed to help him, putting up with his rash decisions and temper for four years, but found out that he only had a tough exterior and was extremely self-conscious and easily offended because of his burns. He would get into fights with many who criticized his looks, getting suspended for a week each time. Adam ended up failing three times because of his suspensions.

So it comes to his last year to find someone to love him. His cousin and her friends became desperate and started setting him up on blind dates, all ending with the girl running out in hysteria or Adam stomping out of the room, red-faced and destroying everything in his path.

Then a new girl came to town…

* * *

Karisa stepped into her new house in suburbia with her luggage, looking around excitedly at her new surroundings.

"So?" her dad asked with a giddy grin on his face. "What do you think?"

"It's _much_ better than our apartment in New York!" Karisa cried, returning the smile.

"And take a listen," he said. "What do you hear?"

Karisa listened and smiled even wider. "Nothing."

"Exactly! No car horns, no ambulance sirens—"

"No shouting of angry walkers when a cab almost runs them over," she added.

"Oh it's pure bliss! I'm loving this life already! Now let's get settled quickly," he said, taking a box of his things upstairs. "We have many boxes to unpack and I need to be well-rested for my first day on the job at your new school."

"Yes Father," she only said, still in wonder at how roomy it felt to have ceilings taller than seven and a half feet.

All the furniture in the house had already been placed, but the rooms lacked decoration, which Karisa would be happy to attend to in her time spent without her nose in a novel, book of poetry or encyclopedia (though she preferred fiction).

Karisa grabbed the piece of luggage she was lugging and carried it to her new room.

Just looking at the bedroom made her mind go blank it was so bland; everything in the room—even the furniture—was white except for the carpet, which was cream. She only imagined with a sigh of how much she'll have to do in this room, let alone the rest of the house, and she knows her father won't be attending to it. Being the only woman in her small family, she had to take some responsibilities such as that along with a good majority of the cleaning.

Oh the cleaning, Karisa thought with dread. This will take _much _longer to clean than their two bedroom apartment.

She shrugged it off though and began the extensive process of unpacking all of her possessions and putting them in their correct place in the many drawers and closet space.

By eight o' clock in the evening, all the boxes of essentials had been emptied out and put in its proper place, and Karisa fell on her bed in exhaustion, glad that the whole moving procedure was almost complete. Now she just needed to get used to the house, neighborhood and school. _The most sensitive part of the process,_ she thought.

She was going into the school year in its second semester. It seems an awkward time to enter a different school, but she has only a year and a half of high school to go, being a junior this year. So far though, it hasn't been as eventful as she had hoped for, but her junior year was bewitched with extremely difficult college courses that she decided to take early so that her senior year would be more fun and filled with less stress. At this point, Karisa just has to bear through it. She _was_ halfway done after all.

Unnaturally though, as most teenagers are, she wasn't nervous about others not liking her or not making any friends. Sure it would be nice to make a few along the way, but she would never have time to hang out with them if she did obtain a few.

Before in New York City, she only had a few acquaintances to greet in class and in the hallway. She sat by herself at lunch, absorbed in whatever book or volume she was currently reading, nibbling on a sandwich made by herself and brought from home. In classes, she would be one of those students that raised their hand whenever the teacher asked a question, only Karisa raised it because she simply knew the answer and was eager to learn, and it confused her when fellow classmates would glance back with a disapproving look on their faces when she answered correctly. She never stopped in the hallways to talk to anyone, having had perfect attendance since seventh grade, and that includes having no tardies, a rare feat indeed.

Being as it may, she was perfectly happy with the way things were. She enjoyed the company of her books and her father, and that was all she needed at this point.

Ready for her first day at a new high school with her clothes laid out on her desk chair and backpack packed with everything she'll need, Karisa went under the freshly laundered covers of her bed after a nice hot shower and read under the lamplight before falling asleep.


	2. At First Sight

Completely unprepared for another day of high school that seemed like it would never end, even though it was his official last semester (if he doesn't get into another fight), Adam was ready to commit suicide. To be honest, he wanted nothing more to stay in bed and let everyone else go about their perfect lives that he wished with all his might he could have.

Adam thought how terrible it was to have to drive half-blinded by sleep when it looked like night at seven in the morning along with having depressing thoughts tumbling slowly over each other within his head.

He parked in his assigned space and slammed the car door, meeting his cousin and her friends who were waiting in the parking space behind his car.

"Should I say 'good morning'?" Jean-Luc asked, leaning against his car as he twirled his car keys. "You don't look quite awake yet."

"Save it," Adam said, crankier than usual with lack of sleep. "What I need is some caffeine. I didn't have time to grab a cup before I left."

"Oh here," Annie offered her Ice Capp to him. "You can have the rest of mine."

"I don't want a coffee slushee," Adam said, turning it down. "It's winter."

"That's what I said," Jean-Luc added.

"Suit yourself," Annie shrugged, sipping on her frozen drink.

"Can we go inside now?" Cameron pleaded, shivering. "I'm freezing!"

"You wouldn't be cold if you had a _coat_," Jean-Luc nagged.

"The meteorologist said it would only be in the fifties—"

"Yes, and we should all worship the weather man because he knows all!" Jean-Luc said over-exaggeratingly, rolling his eyes.

"Come on, you two," Annie said with clear exhaustion in her voice. "It's too early to be fighting, don't you think?"

"Hey Adam, if it came to blows, you'd side with me against this loser right?"

"Luc!"

Jean-Luc turned innocent. "What?"

Cameron shoved in a comment: "I resent that!"

Luc turned to him. "Of course you do."

"Guys, the bell's gonna ring soon," Annie said. "Let's go."

"Finally!" Cameron cried, running ahead of the rest as he clutched his thin sweater to his body. The rest walked at a normal pace to the school doors.

Noticing Adam's silence, Annie asked with concern, "Are you alright? You seem a lot quieter than usual."

"It's just the usual things," he replied. "The cold, the fact that I'm still in school, _this_…" He indicated his terrible scars that covered half of his body.

"Oh cheer up," Luc said, nudging him. "It's your last semester."

"Yeah, and that means I'm running out of time," Adam said, referring to the fact that he hasn't found a girl to love him and get rid of his scars magically.

"Who knows? You might get lucky this time," Luc said optimistically.

Adam snorted. "Tell me when that happens because I certainly don't feel lucky."

Luc saw an unfamiliar face and glanced at the brown-haired beauty that came down the hallway in the other direction. Being, well, Luc, he knew every single pretty face in the entire high school, being tailed by them 24/7 for his dashing looks, sleek physique and natural charm that belonged on the cover of Seventeen magazine. The girl walking down the hallway was definitely a new girl.

"I think your luck is turning around," Luc said with a nod of indication in her direction.

Adam followed Luc's gaze to the girl in a blouse and jeans with her hair tied up in a messy bun as she walked with her nose in a book while a backpack hung off of her shoulder, somehow weaving through the crowd of students without a glance at where she was going.

"You think?" Adam said, looking over his shoulder back at her.

"We definitely haven't tried her yet," Luc said.

Adam couldn't help but feel a little hopeful, despite how the new girl seemed way out of his league, even if he didn't even get a good look at her face with it half-covered by a book.

Adam stopped at his locker and banged it strategically open, not even needing a combination.

"I wonder where she came from…" Luc wondered out loud as he leaned on the lockers.

"Luc, leave that poor girl for Adam," Annie said, tone serious.

"You always think I'm gonna chase any attractive girl that passes me!"

Annie gave him a look.

"Well, yeah," he admitted while Adam gave a short laugh into his locker. "But I've decided I've wasted too much time on girls I know won't last me my while."

"You mean you won't have a new girlfriend every week?" Annie asked.

"Okay, first of all, none of them were _girlfriends_. I was just trying them out. I knew none of them were gonna last!"

"So you just played with their emotions?" Annie cut in, face severe.

"They seemed to like it."

Annie shook her head and sighed.

"And to answer your question," Luc continued, ignoring her obvious dissatisfaction, "Yes, I won't have a different girl with me every week."

"Good," Adam said. "I was sick of introducing myself to every girl you walk out of school with. I'm pretty sure I'm familiar with 90 percent of the female population in this school."

"I'm with Adam," Annie added. "That was starting to get a little much."

"I would've stopped if either of you would have said something!" Luc offered.

"Cameron said something," Adam pointed out, closing his locker.

"And why would I listen to him?"

"Well, he spoke for all of us," Adam informed.

"We didn't want to hurt your feelings," Annie explained to Luc. "And you already dislike your brother."

"You would hate him too if you had to live with him," Luc said.

"Oh look, my homeroom," Annie said abruptly, quickly crossing the hall to it as Adam and Luc continued to walk to theirs.

They walked in silence through the white-painted brick halls as sunlight shined through the windows placed near the high ceilings. All that could be heard was the chatter of students, the slamming of metallic blue lockers and the hustle and bustle of adolescents marching on the white and red colored tile. Adam passed couples hugging and kissing each other as before they went their separate ways to class, and he had to look down in disgust…or was it jealousy?

Luc soon came to his homeroom and said, "Hope I see you at lunch."

"Yeah, see ya," Adam muttered, slightly distracted by his thoughts.

He climbed the stairs to the second floor and went to his own homeroom, Mrs. Chambers's classroom whose walls were covered in Shakespeare and reading posters.

"Good morning," she greeted him as she stood in front of the class with their new schedules.

Adam only nodded in her direction before taking a seat towards the back.

A few students filtered in before the bell rang and Mrs. Chambers began calling their names and handing them their schedules.

"Even if you have a schedule already, the one I'm giving you is the one you use in case some things on it changed," she reminded. "We don't want anyone going into the wrong room because they looked at their old schedule. Trust me, that's happened."

After everyone got their schedules, the students talked amongst themselves while they waited for the next first period bell to ring. Adam didn't participate being the brooding man that he is perceived as.

The bell rang and Mrs. Chambers called as everyone fled the room, "Have a wonderful semester."

Practically all of Adam's periods were required classes since he wasn't very interested in the electives offered, though he took a Middle Ages class that he couldn't help but be a little excited for in seventh period. He heard the guy who teaches it, Mr. Lenske, is a great teacher with a sense of humor, a quality that helps Adam pay attention to what they're saying.

He found out his fourth period teacher had A Lunch, so right after third period, he flocked with the other students to the cafeteria. As he walked into the cafeteria, he found the others sitting in a booth on the far side of the cafeteria, and he headed for them.

Annie saw him approach and waved, smiling as he sat down. "Great! We all have the same lunch! Luc, come on, let's grab our lunch." Adam stood up for Luc to slide out of the booth. "Adam, are you buying a lunch?"

Adam shook his head. "I'm not hungry."

Annie didn't look convinced. "Alright."

Cameron, sitting diagonal to Adam, munched on his homemade lunch and remained silent. Usually if Annie wasn't around, Adam didn't talk to Cameron or Luc unless they spoke to him, so there was always a sometimes awkward silence between Adam and them.

Annie and Luc finally returned and sat down with their food.

"So," Annie began, always able to find a topic of conversation. "What do you think of your classes?" She looked to Adam.

"I don't really have an opinion of them since they're required classes and it's only the first day," Adam replied awkwardly.

"Good first impressions of teachers then?" she asked.

"I guess," he mumbled.

"Is that new girl in any of your classes?" Luc asked him.

"So far, she's not."

"Is she even a senior?" Cameron asked.

"She looked like one to me," Luc said.

"Me too," Adam said.

"Maybe you should go ask her," Annie said, looking across the cafeteria.

Everyone followed her gaze. The new girl was sitting at a table by herself, chewing on an apple as she held a book in the other hand.

"Well?" Luc said to Adam, nudging him. "What are you waiting for? Go talk to her."

Adam looked at him. "And say what?"

"Just introduce yourself," Luc said. "Welcome her here."

"And then what?"

"Anything," Annie said. "Say whatever comes to mind."

Adam hesitated and looked down at his crossed arms as he leaned on the table.

"Come on, Adam," Annie pleaded. "You'll do fine."

Adam sighed. "Fine."

But as he began to stand up, one of the biggest jerks of all of jerkdom swaged over to the new girl with a grin on his face and look in his eye that said, "I can't wait to see that new girl drool over me." He sat right down in front of the new girl.

"Too late," Cameron had to point out as he stared at the football jock sitting with the girl as he glanced back at Adam with pity in his eyes.

"Oh great," Adam moaned with dread as he slowly sat back down.

"Don't jump to conclusions," Annie said quickly.

"Right," Luc jumped in. "If the new girl goes along with him then she wouldn't have been worth the trouble anyway."

"Good point," Adam had to admit.

They all watched the football jock and the new girl like a suspenseful film, waiting to see what will happen next.

* * *

Karisa read her novel as she took a juicy bite of her red delicious, completely absorbed in it as she imagined the other world printed on the pages. She was, in fact, so captivated and riveted by what she was reading that she was entirely oblivious to the other presence that had placed itself right across from her.

A thick finger appeared at the top of her book and was pulled down like an upside-down curtain to reveal a brawny boy with a strong chin, dark gelled hair and a cocky grin.

"Hey." His voice was deep and manly. "Are you a new girl in town?"

Karisa starred at the man before her with a raised eyebrow as she put her book down. "Yes…"

"Well then I need to let you know who I am. I'm Hahn." He winked. "Emmett Hahn." He was trying—and to him he was succeeding—with the James Bond line.

"Pleasure," was all she could say as a grimace grew on her face.

Emmett leaned in on his elbow. "Isn't it? It gets better. I'm actually the MVP on our football team."

He looked to her as if expecting her to be amazed. Karisa faked it and said, "Impressive."

"Yeah, well," he said, making the saddest attempt to be modest. "I don't even try."

"Mhm," Karisa hummed as she tried to return her attention to her book, but he put a muscular hand on it. "Do you know what MVP means?" he checked, wanting to get a bigger reaction from her.

She held back an annoyed sigh. "Yes, I do."

"Most Valuable Player?"

"That's what you said you were." She felt like she was talking to a freakishly large kindergartener.

"I am," Emmett said as he put the large arrogant grin on his face once more. "You should come to a game to watch me play."

"Uh, sure." Karisa tried not to completely blow this guy off in a harsh way even though his enormous ego was crushing her.

"So I'll see you at tonight's game then." It wasn't a question so thankfully Karisa didn't need to respond.

She could only give a small smile that she managed to look convincing as he stood up and walked back to his table of fellow football jocks.

Karisa went right back to her book, trying to ignore the sick feeling in her stomach that the boy had conjured with his overconfidence that was very nauseating. She put her apple down sadly, losing her appetite.

* * *

Luc was trying hard to keep his laughter quiet. "Her faces…Oh my God the looks on her face that she gave him! I can't believe that jock has managed to keep his grades up for football; he's even more oblivious and stupid than I thought!"

"He's entirely blinded by his own ego," Cameron commented disapprovingly, still observing the jock at his own lunch table.

"Adam, if you don't make a move soon I will, just for the best rejection I've ever seen—and Emmett didn't even have a _clue_!" Luc laughed again. "Damn, the guy's an idiot."

"Please, no vulgarity while I'm eating," Cameron commanded sternly.

Luc's grin dropped as he faced Cameron. "Get over it. We're in a high school."

Cameron only shook his head and returned his attention to his food.

A thought jumped into Adam's head and out of his mouth, "Would she do that to me?"

"Of course not!" Luc said, laughing at the absurdity of what Adam asked. "You're not as _nearly_ cocky as the dolt with the football jersey."

"Luc is exactly right," Annie said. "You have much more common sense and, to be frank, more going on up here." She pointed to her head.

"I'll wait until tomorrow," Adam announced, looking over at the new girl again. "She still seems pissed."

"That's probably the best idea," Luc agreed.

With no distraction from any food, Adam continued to observe the new girl from his table as the other three ate and chatted.

Now that he could see her face clearly, he could see that she was very beautiful. She had a heart-shaped face and her hair was the most wonderful color of chocolate brown. It surprised him that she could pull off a simple lavender blouse and boot-cut jeans without diminishing much of her natural beauty. He tried to imagine her with her hair down and in a prom dress…

"Adam."

He looked around at them. They were all staring at him.

"What?"

"It took you four times to hear your name," Luc said.

"So?"

"You are totally falling for her right now and you haven't even said a word to her," Luc clarified.

Adam got defensive. "No I'm not!"

Luc only turned away with a smirk on his face.

"Adam," Annie said. "You were staring at her for almost ten minutes."

Adam was about to say, "Were you counting?" but thought better of it; knowing Annie she probably had been. "Yeah, so? I just happened to be looking at her when I started daydreaming." At this point, he wanted them to lay off. He wasn't falling in love with her _now_! "You know I do that a lot."

"What were you thinking about?" she asked. The others looked to him again.

"Why do you guys need to know?" Adam demanded, getting ticked. "You know what? I'm sitting in the commons."

He stood up and walked out of the cafeteria to the commons, leaving the others a bit bewildered.

* * *

**A/N**: Hey, fellow readers and/or writers! I'm just gonna explain a few things about the story so if you wanna skip this, go ahead.

I could just let you use your imaginations to make your own reasons about why these characters do what they do and act how they act, but I think it would be better if I explained it. So here's the breakdown:

Adam- He is the Beast of our story. The tortured soul, so to speak. He lost his parents in the biggest catastrophe of the century and America and ended up getting very badly burned by an angel of karma, who is our enchantress. To cover her up, she did what she did to teach Adam a lesson, like the enchantress, coming out of nowhere and catching him by surprise. Anyway, Adam has been through a lot already in his youth. The age thing, yeah. I thought it would have been good to have him be 21 since that's the deadline from the movie and it's against the law to stay in high school past that. The reason he's not a "beastly" guy who is always angry in the beginning like the Beast you know, is because he's been humbled by all those blind dates, so he had to learn to control his temper for his dates that ended up not working out anyway. He gets mad when people pick on his appearance though, as any usual teenage boy would, except he let's his anger out in fights, which I thought would be a good reason for him to still be in school. He's not dumb of course. He's an average student with an enormous task to feel normal again. I hope he's a good Beast so far.

Karisa- Our Belle for this evening. She's pretty much Belle in many ways: smart, beautiful, loves to read, and is the new girl in town. (It seems like Belle was the new girl anyway.) I couldn't take those important factors away from the retelling. It just fit too much. And I got her name as I was putting "beauty" or "honor" through random languages, trying to find a good name. One of them reminded me of the name Karisa. I forget what language it was as I was kinda rushing to find one. I'll explain more of her later.

Emmett- My, what a guy, he's Gaston! With a Twilight guy name! Yeah, when I think "Emmett", I think "tough, brawny guy". It fit, so I used it. Please don't think too much on the Twilight connection if you can, okay? Anyway, him being a football jock was only natural, and it's _very_ stereotypical. But everyone's familiar with stereotypes so I thought it'd be a good laugh. Being called MVP, he's very used to people putting him high up on the pedestal, which a completely normal reaction for a teenage boy. Anyone that questions his standing just makes him confused, as you read. He remained oblivious to Karisa's obvious disgust. That's how stubborn and blind he is, so convinced that everyone loves him. Like Gaston.

Jean-Luc- Or Luc, is our Lumiere. I know, it was probably obvious with the French name, but I would repeat it and just think it fit great. And the nickname works, right? Being the Lumiere of our story, he is gonna be on the most wanted list by every girl in the school because he's handsome and charming like your stereotypical Prince Charming. The only thing is he has that side of him that loves to take advantage of those girls who woo over him. As you read, he decided to change his ways. But will he forever?...Probably not. I would explain more but I know him so well I don't even know how to put him into words. Does that make sense?

Cameron- Yes, our Cogsworth in this story. I know, right now you can hardly tell given that I haven't given him much to say. He'll say more, I promise. The character he's based on is authority himself. I would think as a teenager he had a total respect for anyone of power—including the weather man—wanting to become a person of power himself. He's one of those kids who take every AP class they can and have an infinite amount of colleges wanting them as a student. Which reminds me: the brother thing. I thought making the Lumiere and Cogsworth based characters brothers would be pretty funny. The relationship they have is just like being brothers, don't you think? They have that love/hate relationship that made them famous and delightfully funny. I know it's not mentioned, but I made them fraternal twins so that they would be in the same grade. Also, if you have ever talked to twins, they are completely different when it came to personalities. Lumiere and Cogsworth are at either end of the spectrum, so I think it fits. And for future reference, they look nothing alike.

Annie- She's our Mrs. Potts. Being her, she's what keeps the brothers at bay, always being the one to come between them and make them see sense (if they choose too). She also has the quality to her personality that says she always has to help someone in need. I made her related to Adam so that a person would notice that he needed help since he doesn't have any of his own friends. Luc and Cameron were her friends first and they're pretty much a trio with the exception of Adam, who can be off to the side at times. She's the first one to notice something's wrong with Adam, being the maternal figure, and tries to help in any way she can when it comes to him since she knows Luc or Cameron won't think to ask first.

That's all the main characters. Well, all the ones that showed up in this chapter at least. I'll definitely be explaining about the rest later when a certain subject comes up.

Before you finish reading the longest author's note I've ever written, I'd like to thank Damian since I think she was my main inspiration with her own retelling of the renowned love story. I liked how she explained things too, so I thought it was a good idea to explain here also.

Please, feel free to review and tell me what you think. I would love some feedback!

Farewell!

~Annabeth Snicket


	3. First Impressions

As he stormed out, he grabbed a coke from the vending machine on his way to the commons, which was right outside the cafeteria. He sat on the carpeted floor and leaned on the wall, staring at the ceiling as he sipped his soda and waited for the students to start heading to their fourth periods.

Why are they always on him about girls? It's not his fault his confidence was run to ground by some witch masquerading as a hobo by giving him third degree burns on one entire half of his body. And they're acting like he's a child! He's freckin' 21 for God's sake! He should be telling _them_ what to do!

Despite this, he knew he couldn't blow off the only help he's gotten at all. They did set him up on all those blind dates with every girl who would agree to go on one. He couldn't have done that on his own.

Still, they need to learn to give him breathing room. This wouldn't work if they made him tell him what he was thinking every second of the day, even if only a minute of it was about the new girl.

He noticed everyone was leaving the commons and got up and followed too, tossing his empty pop can in a recycle bin along the way.

His next period was College Composition I, another required class he needed to take to graduate. He actually took it last year but in the first two weeks of that semester he got into a fight with a few baseball jocks with buzz cut Mohawks that made fun of Adam's one-sided haircut because hair can't grow wear it was burned. He punched the leader's lights out and gave the rest that didn't scram like rats bloody mouths and noses along with making them double over with sucker punches to the stomachs. That only suspended him for three weeks. He didn't even bother coming into school after that since he was gonna fail anyway. The administration thought that it pretty good reason too, and didn't nag him about skipping with pestering phone calls, to his aunt's satisfaction.

His aunt was indifferent about his failings, having been used to it by then, but mostly because he was 21 and she didn't need to rag on him about anything anymore except pulling his own weight around the house by doing some chores to pay off his rent since he didn't even have a job. All the jobs given to teenagers involve interacting with customers. Adam thinks he's doing the world a favor by not getting a job and making them stare at his burns.

Adam walked into the classroom right as the bell rang.

"Hello again, Mr. Owens," his previous comp teacher, Mr. Hall, greeted from his desk. "Your timing is punctual, as always."

"I guess I got lucky," Adam said as he took a seat towards to back. Mr. Hall liked to give out comments that could mean anything, so Adam just took it as a compliment.

"Hopefully that luck will only progress," Mr. Hall said, being vague about his meaning again.

He started doing attendance, getting acquainted with the students as each raised their hand as their name was called.

"Karisa Hughes."

Adam looked around to see who raised their hand, and wasn't prepared for the new girl to be the one with an arm in the air.

_Karisa_, he thought, making sure he remembered the name. You don't hear that name everyday.

"I know _you're_ here, Mr. Owens," Mr. Hall said, still looking at the attendance on his Mac.

"I could've snuck out when you weren't looking," Adam said, always enjoying a clever remark from him.

"Not with _those_ combat boots, soldier."

Adam grinned, glancing over at Karisa. She was looking at him too, and when they made eye contact, she gave a quick side smile and returned her attention to her fiddling fingers.

_Do I make her nervous?_ he wondered, continuing to gaze at her. It wouldn't be new if that was true, given his appearance consisting of ripped jeans and a leather jacket. The scars didn't help emphasize his outer beauty either.

After Mr. Hall completed the attendance, he played a game he liked to call the "Name Game". He liked to keep things simple when naming anything of his own invention, just to make the students feel somewhat superior. He has that weird sense of humor that you can't help but admire. The main point of the Name Game is to help remember the names of the students.

"It's simple," he explained. "You just say your name and match an adjective, what you like to do, any word that has the same letter as your first initial. Let's go down the rows, shall we?"

Adam knew this from experience. Mr. Hall plays this game to pinpoint the creative and clever minds of the class. Adam made the mistake of using "awesome" to describe him. He hoped Mr. Hall would have forgotten by now.

"It's your turn 'Awesome Adam'," Mr. Hall said. Clearly, he didn't forget.

A few of his peers chortled as they waited for Adam to answer.

"As Mr. Hall already knows, I'm Adam and I am _awestruck_ that he would remember that insignificant detail from last year."

"You're hard to forget, Mr. Owens," Mr. Hall said. Again, that comment could go toward either end of the spectrum, but his smile made the difference. "And I'm not so old that my memory is waning."

Adam pretended to listen to the others until he got to the new girl, who sat two rows away in the middle.

"I'm Karisa," she said, looking at the others and Mr. Hall in turn. "And I'd like to call myself _kaleidoscopic_."

"Ooh that's a good one," Mr. Hall said. "Do you read much, Miss Hughes?"

Karisa smiled. "Yes, very much actually."

"I can tell," he replied with an approving nod.

Adam noticed glancing around that a few kids were exchanging glances, like, "Here's the class suck-up."

He ignored them. They were all too judgmental for his taste, and always have been. You can say that's the reason he defines himself as a lone wolf; he couldn't be less interested in opinions based on appearances like what is typically all there is in a gossip magazine.

Karisa seemed to notice: she put a loose strand of hair behind her ear and her cheeks turned a rosy pink as she stared at her desk.

Adam thought her blushing was kinda cute.

After that period, he headed for Pre-Calculus. He had a new pre-calc teacher from last year, Mr. Penski. Adam's heard some good things about him, so he raised his expectations.

As he was walking down the steps to the first floor, he noticed Karisa walking the same way. Confirming his hopes, he ended up tailing her to his sixth period, walking into the classroom right after her.

Karisa sat right in the middle of the classroom, which was not Adam's favorite spot, but he sat next to her anyway, making sure to sit to her right so his burns weren't glaring at her.

Karisa seemed to recognize him: She smiled and said, "Hey."

"Hey," he returned with a smile.

"Were you just in Mr. Hall's class?" she checked.

"Yeah. I'm Adam." He held out his left hand that was clear of scars.

She shook it. "Karisa."

"You're new here right?" he asked, starting a conversation. See, he can talk to her on his own!

"Yes, I just moved here yesterday."

"Where from?"

"New York City."

"The Big Apple, huh?" Adam grinned. "I remember when I lived there."

"You did?" she asked, getting a little excited to find someone from the same origins. "Where did you-?"

_Beeeeep!_ went the bell that doesn't make a proper bell noise, being electronic.

She waited until it was done beeping to resume. "Where did you live?"

"Um, I think it was the Upper East Side in Manhattan, but I was only nine so I could be wrong."

"Oh! Wow…" Karisa said, surprised. Then, to Adam's confusion, she blushed a bit as she looked to the floor. Apparently, living in that district means something, but he didn't know what. Or was it the fact that he couldn't remember?

Before he could ask, Mr. Penski started speaking.

Adam was distracted practically the entire period, barely catching anything Mr. Penski said. And it didn't help that his math teacher was pear-shaped, which looked a little weird to be honest. When he heard the kids laughing, he knew Mr. Penski must've cracked a joke, and it was annoying that he missed it because he hates being the only one not laughing; it doesn't help his aura of the brooding tough guy. But he was just too preoccupied with Karisa sitting right next to him, trying to avoid his eye contact. And he didn't even know why she was!

Finally, the period was over.

"I'll see you around," Adam said before Karisa could scurry out the door.

"Oh, yeah," she replied, smiling. "I'll see you tomorrow." And she was gone.

Adam couldn't help but feel disappointed as he walked down the halls, but cheered up a bit at the thought of last period. For one, it was last period. The day was almost over. Second, it was Middle Ages. He expected it to be pretty cool.

That period got his mind off of Karisa, at least for a little bit. Mr. Lenske was very funny, putting a good impression on Adam. The time ended up flying by, to Adam's surprise, and he rushed out the door to greet the flooded hallways as the final bell rang.

As he stood at his locker, Annie and Cameron came around.

"Adam, the new girl is in my AP Government class," Cameron informed.

"Really?" Adam said, putting on his coat.

"Well, she must be a senior then," Annie said. "Right?"

"I guess," Cameron said, shrugging. "Only seniors can take that class."

"But she was in my pre-calc and college comp class," Adam said. "Those are junior classes."

"So she's either ahead of her class or behind," Annie said.

"She's ahead," Adam and Cameron said simultaneously, and they glanced at each other.

A laugh burst from Annie. "When did _you_ guys become twins?"

Adam shut his locker. "Very funny."

"One twin's enough, thank you," Cameron said without humor as they began walking to the parking lot.

"Where's your brother anyway?" Annie asked.

"How should _I_ know?" Cameron cried. "Probably snogging some girl in a closet."

"Where'd the British come from?" Adam questioned.

"I prefer that term over…_kissing_," he replied, shivering as though the term gave him chills when he thought about it.

"You're so weird, Cameron," Annie commented, laughing.

"That must make me completely normal," Cameron said.

Adam looked at him, confused. "What?"

"Reverse psychology," Cameron explained. "What people think is weird is actually normal, so that means the people who are 'normal' are actually the weird ones."

"I'm glad I didn't take Psychology," Adam said, "Because that makes no sense."

"It would make sense if you tried to make sense of it."

"Cameron, stop showing off your smarts," Annie ordered with a smile. "We all know your gonna be valedictorian."

"I already have my speech writing out, you know."

Annie laughed but then sighed as she came up to Luc's car, which was vacant of any sign of its owner. "Where is Luc?"

"I already told you my theory," Cameron said.

"And I think you're right," Adam said, glancing back at the school. "Oh look, here he comes."

Luc walked toward them, but he was looking at the ground with a one-sided smirk on his face.

"Luc!" Annie cried, getting him to finally look at them. "Where were you?"

"Sorry, I was taking my time," Luc replied. "Like Adam, I was daydreaming about a girl."

"How would you know I was thinking about her?" Adam asked, slightly annoyed at the comparison.

Luc just gave him a look that said _I'm not stupid._

"Didn't you say this morning that you weren't gonna go chasing after girls?" Annie asked.

"I said I wouldn't chase after futile efforts, not that I wouldn't altogether."

"And this girl's different?" Annie interrogated, an expression of clear doubt upon her features.

"Yes, actually, she is," Luc said convincingly.

Annie still didn't look persuaded.

"Why do you doubt me?" he asked. "I know what I'm doing."

"You _always_ know what you're doing," Annie replied. "It's _why_ you do it that has me concerned."

"You want me to write an autobiography, because that's who I am. And this girl is like that too."

"Pompous and irresponsible?" Cameron asked rudely.

"Oh please!" Luc said. "You _wish_ you were like me!"

"That shouldn't even be considered a joke!" Cameron cried, looking highly offended.

Annie just sighed exasperatingly and got in the front seat, followed by Cameron as he moved to the back.

Luc looked at Adam. "You would think I torture these girls, listening to her."

"Who is the girl anyway?"

"Her name's Charlotte Brun," Luc said with a grin. "I've never seen her before today though. You think you know every girl…"

Adam said abruptly, "I know the new girl now."

Luc became interested. "Really! What's her name?"

"Karisa Hughes."

He seemed to ponder the name. "Karisa…Is she in your classes?"

"Two actually."

"And lunch! Wow, you feel like everything's falling into place?"

"Not yet," Adam said, then he raised an eyebrow at him. "Why? Do you feel that way?"

"I do," Luc admitted. "Think, the first day I proclaim that I won't jump from girl to girl, and suddenly the most beautiful girl I've ever seen—no seriously, this girl is a _knock-out_," he said as Adam let out a laugh. "This…_woman_ pops out of nowhere and she ends up being able to keep guys in the palm of her hand."

"Don't you think you're playing right into her game?" Adam asked skeptically.

Luc grew a mischievous smirk as he backed to the car door. "Not if I get her to play mine first."

"Well, good luck with that," Adam said as he strode to his own car.

"I don't even _need_ luck, my friend!" and Luc was in his car and driving away.

As Adam drove home, he thought about destiny. Is all that stuff real? Everything is just supposed to happen at a certain time, like it's already planned out by some higher power?

But how is that even possible? Was him getting burned by an "angel" part of a plan? To what, torture him and give him headaches at two o' clock in the morning? How does _that_ help?

_If all that crap is real then let it be done already_, he thought. _Give me my happy ending. I've had enough suffering for one lifetime with all the pity glances and half disgusted looks people give me. Sure I was a little brat. I've changed. Why do I have to get a girlfriend to satisfy them?_

_Screw destiny_, he concluded. _I'm doing what I want._

He thought this, but deep down he knew he couldn't stop caring about the spell, as much as he wanted to not care.

* * *

Karisa set dinner on the table. "Father!" she called from the bottom of the stairs to his office. "Dinner's ready!"

"I'll be there in a minute!" he called back.

"I'll be counting!" After counting a minute, she said, "Minute's up! Time to eat!"

"Always the literal one," her father commented with a smile as he came down the carpeted steps.

Karisa smiled. "You know me."

As they went through the living room to the kitchen, her dad sat right down at the table and looked at his dinner. "Karisa, it smells delicious."

"Thank you," she replied appreciatively as she took a seat to his right at the square wooden table for four. "I don't make beef stew too much because of time, but I thought today was an exception since I have no homework."

"No one gave homework out? Really?" he asked, surprised. "I thought I was the only one who didn't!"

"No, they just gave out the rules for parents to sign, which I have right here for you." She slid the papers over to him.

"You'd think I wouldn't have to sign anything being a teacher there," he said as he riffed through them.

Karisa shrugged. "They probably don't know I'm related to you having a different name and all."

"Oh right. I wanted you to keep your mother's name in her memory. Besides, you know how kids would get if they knew your dad was a teacher."

"Yes, I know," Karisa said as her tone became sad as she stared at her food. "I don't think it's making much of a difference though."

He looked up, concerned. "What do you mean?" His face grew angry. "Are kids already giving you the cold shoulder? You know this was supposed to be somewhat of a new start for us and-!"

"Dad," Karisa said sternly, but with no disrespect, for him to stop. "They aren't giving me the cold shoulder…exactly. It's just first impressions because all the teachers like me and I'm new."

"Well who _wouldn't_ like you? You're pretty, smart, clever—"

"Dad," she pleaded as she started to blush at the praise.

"Point is, you're a good kid and deserve more than the cruelties of your peers because of what they _think_ they know about you. I never understood why other kids never called you to go out and have fun, and it bothers me. These are your teen years. You should be out there having fun with people your own age."

"I'm happy with the way things are, Dad," she said truthfully, eating a spoonful of beef, carrot and broth. "I don't need to go out everyday with kids from my grade. It's just the whole talking behind-my-back deal that has me confused. I mean, they judge so quickly. How is it possible to develop an opinion of someone with no discussions with the person in question whatsoever?"

"I don't know, honey," he said, shaking his head in bafflement. "It's just the way the world is now, all cosmetic and whatnot."

"Today wasn't all bad though," Karisa added. "A couple of guys talked to me."

His face turned to stone. "Guys? You mean the opposite gender?"

"Yes, Dad, but they didn't ask me out or anything like that." She didn't feel like bringing up Emmett inviting her to his football game. "I only talked with them."

"Well, that's _something_," he admitted. "As long they didn't approach you the wrong way."

"Dad," she sighed. "I won't get assaulted in a high school. They have plenty of teachers and staff walking around to prevent _that_."

"Who talked to you?"

"Well…" How is she gonna put Emmett? "A guy from the football team talked to me at lunch."

"Football team?" he asked, wary. "I wouldn't get too affiliated with boys like that."

"You don't have to worry about that," Karisa said with a short laugh. "And I had a chat with another boy who's in my college comp and pre-calc classes."

"What's his name?"

"Adam Owens, I believe," Karisa replied, remembering Mr. Hall's class.

"I have that kid in my third period. I don't really know what to make of him though, with his apparel and all. And his scars…" He seemed to imagine them as he looked at the creases in the wood with furrowed eyebrows.

"Weren't we just talking about judging by appearances?" she reminded.

"Oh I know, honey, it's only that, well, I wonder how he got them in the first place."

"When I talked to him he seemed very decent, and I learned he's from New York City as well."

"Well as long as he's courteous. Did he say from what part of New York?"

"Yeah, the Upper East Side," she replied, becoming disconcerted again. "Isn't that where all the high-class people live?"

"A good majority, yes, but you shouldn't be intimidated by that little fact."

"It's not that. I mean, I wonder what happened to make him go down the financial ladder. It can't have been good."

"Everyone has their reasons, hon," her father said. "You should be more concerned of their current state and not worry about how they got to where they are or why. Now, the present, is what matters." Then he added, "But thinking ahead is good too, like for college and a career."

"Dad," she smiled as she stood up with her empty bowl and grabbed his, carrying it to the steel sink. "I have time for that later."

"Not much," he said. "You have to at least have ideas."

"I don't, and I don't want to talk about this right now!"

"I don't have time to talk anyway," he said, clearing the table and bring the rest of the dishes to the counter next to the sink. "I have to finish writing out this week's lesson plan."

"Okay, have fun," Karisa said distractedly as she started washing dishes.

"Thank you for dinner, honey, and for cleaning." He came up and kissed her on top of her head. "You're the best."

"I would hope so," she said, grinning.

She heard him laugh as he went back up the stairs to his office, leaving her alone with soapy water, dirty dishes and her mind that never ceased to wander to the perfect world she dreamed about from her books.

* * *

**A/N: **Hopefully, this is appealing to your liking. I'm happy I already got some reviews, thanks to Clara Spencer, disneydork29175 and Joan Montague 130.5.09. Thanks for the criticism and in case you're interested (and reading this) I just added a little more descriptions on the school in the Chapter 2, just a paragraph since I saw I could add something there. To the characters:

Adam- You read that I let you see a lot of what's going on in his head, especially in the beginning, so I don't think I have to explain too much about that.

Karisa- She may be content with others not talking to her particularly, but she doesn't like people gossiping about her, especially when she didn't do anything wrong or even had enough time to prove herself. I also had to make her an outcast somehow so that her and Adam would have something in common, other than them coming from the same city.

Luc- I hope, if you know what other Beauty & the Beast story I have out, that you figured out what's coming with that last bit when he talked to Adam. Charlotte Brun? You'll meet her soon. *grins and winks*

Cameron- I think he explained himself, with the little exchange that "showed off his smarts". He has confidence when it comes to grades and being the top of the class. And the snogging thing? That was more or less a salute to his predecessor's origins. I thought it would be small thing to laugh at.

Annie- Her going off on Luc was only because she knows his habits and is concerned for the girls he fools with. Obviously, she doesn't approve of Luc's behavior when it comes to girls. It's part of her motherly nature to be worried for the girls who fall under _his_ spell. She doesn't get that a fair majority don't care if Luc's with them for only a day, because they get to say they dated him.

Karisa's Father- You'll learn his name later, I promise. It just hasn't come up for the right time to announce it. I think next chapter you'll see it. If you haven't guessed, he's our Maurice. I made him a teacher of [you'll learn the subject next chapter, I promise] at Karisa's school so that that's even another reason for students to turn away from her. I don't think I can explain him much, because mainly he's just being a good father. Like Belle and Maurice, they care for each other and have normal conversations that very rarely ever include conflict, especially since they are all they have.

Well that concludes this author's note. I hope those of you who are reading this far in the note that you will write a review or give me some kind of feedback. I would greatly appreciate it!

'Til next time!

~Annabeth Snicket


	4. Bad Day

When Adam wakes up, it's usually from disturbing dreams that involve him being in flames as the angel of death laughs maniacally at his pain and blood-curdling screams, which end up coming out of his mouth as he shoots up from his bed in a cold sweat, gasping as his heart threatened to burst from his chest. When he first started haven't these types of nightmares around the age of sixteen, Aunt Brianna would run into his room, thinking he was about to be murdered or something. She would ask frantically, "What? What's going on?" and notice no one was in the room but a frightened teen and ask, "Are you alright?" He would swallow and say, "I'm fine. Nightmare."

Then they started happening almost every night. Aunt Brianna began asking if he needed to see a psychiatrist. 1. Because she was concerned that these dreams might not be healthy for Adam. 2. She was starting to lose sleep. Stubborn as he usually was, he refused to go to a doctor, saying only crazy people go to psychiatrists; he knew why he was having those dreams anyway. His godmother only shrugged, knowing from experience Adam wouldn't give in, ever. After that, his aunt stopped checking on him because of the frequency of his late night screaming.

The nightmares were starting to get to Adam after five years, almost always being the same with him on fire and the angel that gave him his scars staring at him as he burned with blazing red eyes and shark teeth.

Today was no exception: Tangled in his sheets, his eyes burst open to only be blinded by the morning sunlight that shone brightly through his window, illuminating his entire body. No wonder he had felt like he was on fire.

Adam sat up in bed, getting the sheets unwrapped from his legs and torso and letting his aching eyes dilate in the shade. He stared at the curtains swept to the side of his window. His aunt must've opened them up before she went to work at six in the morning.

He glanced at his alarm clock: 6:57 AM. School started at 7:20

"Oh shit!" Adam jumped out of bed and ran to his dresser, grabbing jeans and a T-shirt at random and sprinting to the bathroom, hopping in the shower at the speed of light.

He was out in 7.8 minutes, instantly brushing his teeth as he cursed himself for not setting his alarm last night.

He looked at the clock in the bathroom after he was dressed: 7:09. It takes about eight minutes to drive to school.

"God dammit!" he swore as he realized he didn't have time to shave, and he had dark stubble all over his neck and chin.

Adam ran out of the house and was burning rubber reversing out of the driveway, almost hitting some chum driving to work, who blared his horn at him.

Adam just quickly waved a hand at him in apology and sped off down the road, going faster than 30 miles per hour that was for sure.

Naturally, having his luck, he was stopped at every red light along the way, causing Adam to bang his head on the steering wheel several times out of plain infuriation.

When he parked in his spot at school, Luc, Annie and Cameron weren't there, not like Adam expected them to be. As he hurried into the front lobby, the bell rang.

It was official. This world was against him.

Adam stomped off to his class, unable to control the anger boiling inside him as he went to his first period, where all present in that classroom stared him down as he took a seat in the back.

He did his best to remain silent through the first three periods, trying to keep his irritation off of his face. But from the apprehensive glances of some students, he wasn't doing very well on hiding his murderous feelings from his features.

During third period, Mr. Clark's Physics class, Adam noticed Mr. Clark's continuous analyzing glances at him, distracting Adam from even his anger and turning it into confusion. Adam couldn't help but look up at Mr. Clark when he felt his eyes boring into the top of his head as Adam worked. What was he staring at Adam for? He didn't want to ask, thinking he would only bring attention to himself.

Adam pondered on his Physics teacher's behavior as he followed the A lunch crowd to the cafeteria.

The others were sitting at the same booth as the day before, and he sat down in the same spot next to Luc.

"Where were you?" Annie asked with concern.

"Lemme guess," Luc said, smiling as he noted Adam's stubble. "You slept past your alarm."

"More like forgot to set it the night before," Adam replied, looking and sounding exhausted.

"Did you come in late?" Cameron asked.

"Yeah. And I had that stupid dream again."

"Which one?" Annie inquired.

"The one where I'm on fire and that angel is laughing at me. It's really starting to bug me, especially since this one was clearer than usual."

Luc shook his head in mild amazement. "Man, you are messed up."

"Luc," Annie warned, glancing at Adam.

"It's fine," Adam said with a careless wave of his hand. "I know I am. No point in denying it."

Annie made a somewhat sympathetic face.

Adam looked at Luc. "But if you had been another person, I probably would've socked you."

Luc laughed. "I'm glad I'm me at this point."

"You _do _know how conceited you sounded, right?" Cameron said.

"Can we not start any bickering please?" Annie pleaded as Luc was about to retort.

Adam took advantage and changed the subject. "Hey, do you guys know Mr. Clark?"

"That new teacher?" Annie checked. "Yeah, I've heard of him."

"He kept staring at me last period, like he was sizing me up or something."

"Okay, I'm sure a teacher wasn't 'sizing you up'," Annie said, laughing.

"But he was kinda examining me from his desk, like he was trying to figure me out."

"Adam, I'm not trying to be offensive," Luc began, "But you just sound paranoid from the way your day's been going. I think you should just forget about it. It was probably nothing."

Adam sighed. "Probably." He glanced around the cafeteria and spotted Karisa sitting in her former table.

"I'm gonna go talk to Karisa," Adam announced as he stood up from the booth.

"There ya go!" Luc said with a wide grin. "Knock her dead."

Adam glanced back at him as he arched an eyebrow, laughing and shaking his head as he faced Karisa again.

He sat down across from her, her nose in a book. He expected her to look up but she didn't.

"Um…Karisa?"

She looked up, and at seeing him her expression turned from a focused look to one of surprise. "Oh!" She put down her book, placing a bookmark back in it and closing it as she said, "Hi, Adam."

"Am I interrupting or…?"

"No, no, I read it already anyway," she replied hastily with a sincere smile.

"So you like to read?"

"Yes, very much. I'm sort of known for it, always having a book on me." She seemed to catch herself. "Well, I _was_ back at my old school. Do you read much?"

Adam shook his head. "No. I only read when I have to, and I haven't had many good experiences with books anyway."

"Well, I understand that," Karisa said. "Most of the required books that we have to read aren't really some of my favorites. Like _Lord of the Flies_." She grimaced.

"Oh I hate that thing!" Adam said. "It was so boring and…_weird_!"

"Did you have to read it for the symbolism?"

"Yeah. I didn't get any of it. I mean, who spends that much time making up who is what and what each character represents and stuff? I don't think anyone does that, and that all of that was made up by the teachers."

"It was the vulgarity of the plot and characters that bothered me," she replied. "The whole concept of boys turning into savages and killing each other was…disturbing."

"I hear that—I mean I agree." Why was he talking in slang?

Karisa noticed it and smiled amusedly, but decided to overlook it. "Maybe if I gave you suggestions for books, you'll give them a second chance?" she offered.

"Yeah," Adam said as a small smile grew. "I'd be willing to try again."

"Hey, Owens!"

Adam turned to see the big football jock himself coming over with a nasty sneer on his face, eyeing Adam with hatred.

"Get your little burnt ass away from my girl," Emmett snarled, standing right over him.

"Your girl?" Adam asked disbelievingly as he continued to sit and not be intimidated. His smile altered into a smirk. "Hah, are you still confusing a 'yes' with a 'no', or is _rejection_ just not in your vocabulary?"

"Is this confusing to you?: Get the hell away from her!" Emmett shoved Adam in the chest and onto the floor.

Karisa had been sitting in complete shock until then and finally came to her senses. "Emmett! Leave him alone!"

"Sure I will," he replied. "After I make Owens a grease spot on the floor!"

Adam jumped back up, jaw set and fists clenched. "Listen to 'your girl' Emmett. She's trying to protect you from getting hurt."

"I'm not the one who's gonna get hurt." And Emmett threw a punch at Adam's face.

Adam, by some miracle, caught it in his hand and held it back, arm shaking from the exertion of his muscles. He didn't want to fight. Not in front of Karisa. Not to get suspended again and lose all chances of finally graduating.

Adam kicked Emmett in the stomach before he could retaliate, making Emmett take a few steps back as he doubled over.

"I don't want to fight, Emmett," Adam said, standing proud and tall. "I'm done fighting."

Emmett gave a short laugh as he straightened up. "How noble, little twerp. For that and how you held me back, I'll let you off the hook today." He got very near Adam and said in a low tone. "But next time you come over here and try to talk to my girl, bring your fighting with you. And let me tell you something: Once a fighter, always a fighter." With that and a knowing smirk, he turned on his heel and left the cafeteria with his disciples right behind him.

Adam noticed the dead and utter silence and glanced around. Everyone in the cafeteria was staring at him, including the teachers placed at the entrance, who appeared like they had been about to intervene, but just gave him threatening looks. He glanced at Karisa, who was now hiding behind her book, her face too close to it for her to be reading it. Clearly, she wanted no attention at this point.

He respected that and gave her peace, knowing talking to her again in here was going to bring exactly what she didn't want, and headed back to his own booth, all eyes still on him. The chatter didn't resume until he was sitting at his booth, its habitants still staring agape at him.

Adam didn't want anymore silence at this point. "_What_?"

Annie was the first to speak. "You…didn't fight him."

"Yeah? So? I have self-control, to the surprise of everyone." Adam looked at each of them in turn. "Can't you guys get over that I've changed for the better?"

"I am _so_ proud," Annie admired with a sincere smile, eyes shining as she put a hand over her heart.

"Aren't you being a tad dramatic?" Adam asked uncomfortably.

"Yeah Annie," Luc said, giving her a look that seemed to question her sanity. "There's no need to cry about it."

"You're right, I'm sorry." She closed her eyes and fanned them as she took a deep breath before looking at Adam admiringly again. "It's just…I've never seen you stay calm like that before! I was astounded and I'm so _proud_!" Annie began to tear up once more.

Cameron pulled out a handkerchief out of his back pocket and held it out for Annie as he rolled his eyes. Annie took it gratefully and dabbed her eyes.

"I have to admit," Luc said to Adam. "You surprised me when you kept your cool like that. I don't think I could've done the same. The guy deserves to have the sense knocked into him."

"I think you'll need a truck to do that," Cameron said. "I bet the truck could teach him something."

Luc faced him. "That's one of the best things I've heard you say."

Cameron stared for a moment, emotionless. "No comment."

Luc pointed to Adam as he remembered something. "Karisa. How'd that go?"

Annie joined the conversation, entirely calmed down. "Yes. How was your chat?"

"Pleasant," Adam replied. "Until the douche bag decided to ruin it."

"You have the next two periods," Luc said. "You can continue talking then."

"Actually," Adam began, glancing back at Karisa's masquerade as an open book. "I don't think she'll want me talking to her for the rest of the day. She doesn't want any attention."

"How come?" Cameron asked.

"I don't think she wants bad press coverage having a conversation with me after that little incident. Word's bound to spread."

"But why so self-conscious?"

"That, I do not know."

There was a pause as they wondered, soon interrupted by Annie. "We have five minutes to get to class, guys."

They were soon out of the cafeteria, and Annie and Cameron went their separate ways down a different hallway.

"Hey." Luc caught up with Adam and patted him on the back. "Good luck with Karisa."

"Thanks," Adam replied. "I know you don't need it but good luck with Charlotte."

"You're right; it's not needed, but appreciated." Luc smiled and moved up the oncoming stairs on his right as Adam continued down the hall.

The next two periods with Karisa were a bit awkward. Karisa was reading before class, her eyes moving back and forth as she read each line of each page with amazing speed that Adam couldn't help but admire. He knew _he_ couldn't do that. But she seemed extremely focused and strained, as if she was trying to distract herself but wasn't exactly succeeding, because she appeared troubled when she put the book away as the bell rang and the teacher started speaking.

Adam didn't sit next to her, but kept his distance. He didn't know if he should comfort her and tell her that whole fight was nothing.

_It was nothing; it was just about _you, Adam thought sarcastically at some point through Pre-Calculus, barely focusing on his assignment which consisted of twenty problems, each taking about twenty minutes. He wasn't going to finish this homework anyway. He glanced up at Karisa from across the room, and he saw that she was reading her book again.

He stared in awe and glanced at the clock. There was only two minutes left in class, and Mr. Penski had given them twenty minutes to work, along with two days to finish it.

That's impossible! How could she finish the homework so fast?

Adam could only wonder until the bell rang, and he snapped out of it to grab his things. When he looked up, Karisa was already gone.

_This is going to be harder than I thought_, Adam thought bitterly.

* * *

Karisa wove through the hallway between students walking slowly to be cool, she imagined. She was like a driver in a sports car stuck behind a bunch of people driving with their cell phones to their ears and not paying enough attention to the road. The glacial-paced students only made her agitated as she strode using all the length of her legs, but she knew she was only trying to distract herself from the troubling occurrence at lunch.

There had been guys about to fight over her—on her _second day_! Where did _that_ come from? No man in New York City had even given her a second glance, much less started a fist fight over her. She's never even had any weird boys stereotypically classified as nerds try and flirt with her, mostly because there were much more attractive girls to fish fruitlessly for when you lived in New York City, one of the centers of fashion and high-life. This just threw Karisa off of her usually stable balance entirely.

And the way the students at lunch stared—no, _glared_—at her after Emmett left. How was that her fault? At _all_? Was she fighting too? Last she recalled, she wasn't, but her peers were acting like it. She remembered some of the girls, three cheerleaders actually, all sitting together at the football team table, were giving her steel daggers laced with poison with their expressions, like they really wanted to _kill_ her. But their eyes had been shiny like they had been about to cry. They had been all blonde and all blue-eyed and all _very _envious of Karisa, and it again baffled her to no end. How different suburbia was from the big city!

She had been trying to divert her attention on the incident at lunch by focusing as much as she could on reading and class work, but to no avail. The file she had tried to place in the very back of her mind magically comes to the front every time she's left with nothing to read, write or listen to.

Such as walking in the hallway.

As she finally made it to AP Government, a boy with wire-rim glasses and a wider build looked up.

Though this same boy who dressed in khaki pants and sweater vests had been glancing over at her during class the day before, Karisa was thankful for the opportunity to take her mind off of the fight, and jumped on it: Why is he always looking up at her? It wasn't a longing sort of look, as if he had a crush on her, but an observant look, like he was curious to see what she would do. It had her wondering, and she was going to find out.

Karisa sat in the desk on the boy's left. She smiled pleasantly and said, "Hello."

The boy, who had appeared to return to his textbook that laid open on his desk, glanced back at her cautiously, appraising her with a suspicious look. "Can I help you?"

Karisa was caught off-guard at his response. "Um…" She decided to just cut to the chase with this one and leaned in on her desk to reply. "Well, actually, I came over here to ask you why you keep glancing at me from across the room."

The boy's eyes went to the floor as he blushed lightly. "Well…I'm afraid the reply to that would…perturb you in some way."

"At this point, there is nothing more than can perturb me today." And Karisa prepared herself for a proclamation.

He shrugged as if her explanation was understandable, and hesitated much on his answer. "I'm simply…well…I'm watching you for someone else. Just being observant," he added innocently.

Karisa raised a skeptical eyebrow. "For who?"

He let out a nervous laugh. "You already know him."

Her eyes narrowed. "Emmett?"

The boy started as if he'd been electrocuted. "What? No! No, no, no, no, no." He gave an honest smile, still cringing slightly from her tapered gaze. "I have no contact with that man at all, thankfully."

"Then who?"

"Um…"

_Beeep_! went the bell.

"Quiet down and take your seats," the teacher's voice drawled as he walked into the classroom.

The boy sighed deeply in relief as he turned to face the front in his seat and avoiding Karisa's gaze as she still glanced at him warily.

When it came to the end of class and the final bell rang, the boy was prepared to escape anymore interrogation from Karisa, practically racing to the door.

Karisa let him go, instead following him closely down the hallway to see who he was reporting too. Several times, she almost lost him, but the boy stood out with his unusually neat attire where every other boy wore a t-shirt and jeans.

He came up to an open locker while a short girl of about 5'4" with straight-leg jeans and a long-sleeved shirt with a square neck line came up next to him, both facing the man behind the locker. Karisa could tell it was a man because of the ripped jeans and black combat boots—wait…

The locker slammed shut to reveal the one being informed.

Karisa approached them, feeling like her head was steaming.

She stomped up to him. "Adam?"

He appeared alarmed at her expression. "Uh, hi, Karisa."

"Why are you using your friends to spy on me?" she asked angrily.

"What?" Adam cried, ultimately surprised at the question that just seemed to have dropped from the sky. "What are you talking about?"

"Your friend"—she indicated Cameron with a finger—"said he was watching me for someone. That would be you, wouldn't it?"

Adam stared open-mouthed at a stiff and feeble-looking Cameron. "Why did you say that?"

"I—I didn't mean—"

"I know exactly what you meant," Karisa interrupted Cameron's stuttering and faced Adam. "Are you too afraid to talk to me now with Emmett threatening you, so you have to use your friends to check on my progress?"

"What? No! I was—"

Karisa eyes started to tear up as her voice cracked. "Were you too afraid to be caught talking to the class suck-up then?"

Adam's stomach dropped at her tortured expression and raised his hands in an attempt to comfort her. "Karisa—"

"Stop," she ordered, taking a step back and shaking her head. "Just stop." And she was running away down the hallway, clutching her textbooks to her chest.

"Wait!" Adam cried in vain. "Karisa, wait!" But she had already vanished with the crowd of departing students.

How could she think that? He had talked to her at lunch, he had talked to her in Pre-Calc, and all because of that stupid fight with Emmett she was going to think that he thinks of her as an outcast? How could everything that could have gone wrong, gone wrong in the exact same day?

"AHH!" He hollered at the sky as he punched the locker with the side of fist, breathing hard. He moaned as he laid his forehead on the cool metal and slid down the lockers, head still leaning on them.

Cameron and Annie stared in horror and pity at Adam, barely comprehending what had happened.

"Hey!" A cheerful voice came from behind them both, and Luc stuck his head between Cameron and Annie as he leaned on each of their shoulders with his elbows. "What'd I miss?"

Cameron and Annie simply looked at him with appalled faces, and Luc caught the vibe, his grin fading as if their expressions were contagious.

Luc looked cautiously at Adam's form on the floor. "Is it about…?"

"Yes," Annie answered, knowing who he was silently referring to.

Luc sighed and walked around Annie to kneel next to Adam. "Adam, whatever mess got started can be cleaned up easily."

"You wouldn't know," Adam replied, still staring off to where Karisa disappeared. "You didn't see the look she gave me."

"Man, you're not gonna fix this by sitting here. Now stand up, and let's go home." Luc tried to grip Adam's arm to help him up but Adam shrugged it off.

"Adam," Annie began, her tone motherly as she approached him. "You need to pull yourself together. You know you can fix this up tomorrow."

Adam wanted to yell at them so bad, to get away from him and let him wallow in self-pity, but when he became angry at his only help and yelled nasty things to them, somehow he would pass by a mirror and see the full side of his scars, reminding him of what he had to do. The sight made him feel terrible, as he had shown them his ugly, scarred side that symbolized the rotten core that had gotten him that scar in the first place. He didn't want to be reminded of what he had to do to get rid of the scar and how his last chance had stormed away from him with tears in her eyes.

Adam breathed deeply through his nose to keep his fury at bay and stood up slowly, refusing to look at any of them as he walked ahead of them, and they closely followed.

Cameron was finally able to speak as they drew near their cars, but softly. "Adam…I'm truly sorry about that whole mix-up."

Adam sighed through his nose again and said to the ground, "It's not entirely your fault, Cam. Shit happens. Today just wasn't my day to begin with."

"Good things come from bad," Annie reminded with an encouraging smile. "You'll fix this tomorrow. She was probably having a bad day too."

"I'm gonna blame that on Emmett, the douche."

Annie inclined her head and put her fists on her hips as a mother would disapprove her child, but then sighed. "If blaming helps…"

"It does for me. I feel better already."

As Luc opened his car door, he said with a smirk, "Don't forget to set your alarm tonight!"

Adam gave him a mock salute as he backed to his own car and gave a lopsided grin, "Thanks for that."

Luc returned the salute before getting in the driver's seat, and speeding off with a squeal of tires. Adam could only imagine how Cameron would feel in the front seat, his hands bracing himself as he stared at the road, terrified, then yelling at Luc for his reckless driving. Adam grinned as he thought of Luc smirking at his brother mischievously. Adam knew Luc was torturing him on purpose, probably because Cameron admitted it had been his fault that Karisa had accused Adam, but mostly because Luc loved bugging the hell out of Cameron.

Adam's smile diminished as he drove, though, when he thought of Karisa's accusing eyes shining with tears, all the pain she had endured from her peers clear and plain upon her beautiful features. Looking back now, he realized that no mascara had run; she had had no make-up on.

_Well it wasn't like she needed any_, he thought, and he seemed to just then realize how truly unique this girl was. _All _girls in the high school wear make-up. It was automatic because all of them felt they _needed _make-up to be beautiful, therefore a good majority go overboard and end up looking like painted China dolls. But Karisa must not think she needs any. She must like the way she is, and is simply disappointed rather severely that her peers don't like who she is—or more like appears to be, since none of them have given their time to get to know her, unlike Adam.

_I _am _way over my head on her_, he admitted after a moment. And he was right.

But Karisa might not see it that way, and that thought gave him hope.

This can be fixed. It's just a misunderstanding.

Lunch. He _will_ talk to her at lunch, Emmett or no Emmett.

Adam sighed, puffing his cheeks as the air blew out of his mouth. _I hope she forgives me…

* * *

_**A/N: **I hope it was worth the wait! Sorry it took so long. :/ I don't have much to explain right now without being redundant. Many thanks to those who have reviewed and signed my story up for story alerts! :)

'Til next time!

~Annabeth Snicket


	5. Repair

Karisa, for the first time, didn't want to go to school. She was as reluctant to get out of bed as any other typical teenager when the alarm went off, slapping the snooze button a few times before actually getting out of bed. But being this reluctant only made her stressed when she was getting ready, for she was in fear of her perfect attendance record that she wanted to keep until the end of high school. Also, her dad had to get to school early, and she didn't want to keep him waiting. She didn't understand why she kept getting out of bed late when it only left her in a bad mood for the duration of school hours.

She had been in a bad mood anyway from that one day of school with the stupid fight over her at lunch involving Adam and Emmett, along with Adam sending his own cronies to spy on her in other classes. On top of that, the student body thought she was a suck-up in class and always eyed her at lunch like they were expecting another fight to erupt near her. It was humiliating, and she could do nothing about it.

Karisa never thought she would be in such a powerless position. Even in New York, she had had some rank having grown up with the rest of the kids attending the school. Now here in suburbia, it was a completely different story. She actually believed she would be able to have a fresh start and shed those embarrassing childhood memories that everyone in the City had retained about her.

She had to laugh out loud at the thought that now seemed completely absurd, looking at her current situation. How had it turned out like this? What did she have to do to earn some amount of respect from these people?

But then again, why should she care? What difference does it make to her if her peers didn't think of her kindly when what they think shouldn't matter to her anyway? They don't know her. And they won't attempt to…which is the part she's most concerned about. Word spreads throughout the students, and then because they hear these nasty rumors, they won't make an attempt themselves. Is this generation so naïve that they believe everything they hear now? If so, she stands out more from this crowd than she thought.

The only one who talked to her first, was Adam. Obviously, he didn't listen to any rumors. That or he doesn't receive the students' feedback, being an outcast himself.

Oh why did she cut him off? Why didn't she get the message when in his eyes he claimed he never sent out his friend to spy on her? She had been blinded by her own tears, that's why. Pathetic excuses. Now, because she told him to stop, he did. Completely. He kept his distance at lunch, in class, and whenever they happened to pass in the hallway.

Karisa realized that Adam had listened to her and followed her orders, as much as she now wanted him to go against them. If he had been any bit of Emmett, he would have ignored her plea and kept talking to her anyway.

_I have to go fix this_, she admitted to herself as she sat at her empty table, book aside, looking across the cafeteria to Adam in his booth with his friends. It was time for her to step up and admit her wrong for ever stopping him from doing what every normal person would do: Welcome the new girl.

She took a deep, steadying breath, rose slowly from her table and walked nervously to Adam's booth, grabbing her book from her table and clutching it to her chest as a frightened child would do to a teddy bear.

Luc saw Karisa approaching and nudged Adam, not taking his eyes off the girl coming toward them ever so cautiously.

Adam glanced at Luc and followed his eyes, being slightly taken aback at Karisa looking down at him with apology imminent in her eyes.

"Karisa," was all Adam could utter.

"Hi, Adam," she said awkwardly, looking to the floor as she spoke. "Can I…talk to you, please?" She began to blush.

"Uh, yeah. Sure." He stood up from the booth as eyes of students and teachers alike followed them to a corner of the cafeteria devoid of any nearby listeners.

Karisa faced him, her eyes finally able to look at his. "Adam, I…want to apologize for what I said a couple weeks ago. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."

"Hey, I understand," Adam cut in. "That fight must've scared you. There's really no need to apologize. I don't feel like you did anything wrong—"

Karisa gave a short, sarcastic laugh. "Really? I accused you of using your friends as spies and you think I didn't do anything wrong?"

He shrugged. "Well, you might have just been having a bad day; you had a right to be suspicious with…you know." He didn't feel like bringing Emmett's name up. That name never gave him good feelings, and he was sure the feeling was mutual for Karisa.

She gave him a quizzical look. "How…?" but she shook her head and continued, "That's no excuse for being accusatory."

"I wasn't having a hot day either," Adam explained, knowing that she had been about to say, _How did you know?_ "I call that an excuse in my book."

A corner of her mouth lifted. "Excuses or none, I take back what I told you to do."

Adam breathed a huge sigh of relief, the couple weeks of agony mauling over what he was going to do with his last chance refusing to talk to him, fading to the very back of his mind. He had decided to not talk to her after all that one day of the incident, thinking he would only upset her. Patience _does_ bring rewards.

Karisa was a tad perplexed at his reaction and said with a smile, "I'm glad to see you're relieved."

"Oh. Yeah, yeah," Adam replied with embarrassment, but smiled as he said, "Thanks. I'm glad we're on speaking terms again."

She nodded. "Me too." She looked over Adam's shoulder, her expression turning worried. "Emmett's looking over."

Adam followed her gaze: Indeed, Emmett was glaring at Adam threateningly, punching his fist into his palm in indication that a fight will start if Adam didn't beat it.

Adam let out an annoyed sigh. He would never want to comply with Emmett, but a fight was the last thing he wanted, especially with how well that went with Karisa last time.

He faced Karisa again. "I'll see you next hour then, where Emmett can't touch us."

She smiled and nodded. "Sounds like a plan." She walked past him while Adam grinned back and followed her with his eyes until she was out of the cafeteria.

He glanced back at Emmett, who was still glaring, and Adam waved at him with a mockingly friendly grin on his face. Emmett only narrowed his eyes menacingly and turned back around to return his attention to three blonde pompon girls smiling adoringly at him.

"Don't those cheerleaders have anything else to do?" Cameron asked, observing the three blondes at Emmett's table disapprovingly as Adam sat back down at their booth.

"Cam, those are clearly pom girls," Luc pointed out to him like it was obvious.

"And you would know the difference, wouldn't you?" Cameron said, facing Luc. "I'm sure they're checked off your list of girls you 'dated'." He thrust quotes into the air.

"I'm proud to say I don't get affiliated with girls who woo over _that_," Luc replied, nodding towards Emmett with a glare in his direction.

"Yeah, no wonder Emmett thinks he can get every girl he wants," Adam said. "Those three probably tell him he can."

"Along with how handsome, strong and gorgeous he is," Annie added nonchalantly, "which is slightly redundant when you think about it." She went back to sipping her drink.

All the boys stared at her in surprise. "And you would know…how?" Luc asked.

Annie glanced at them all. "Have you ever passed them when you go to buy your lunch?" They remained silent. "Don't. I've lost my appetite once or twice."

"I can imagine," Adam said with a grimace.

Annie pursed her lips. "That was mean, wasn't it?"

"I'm sure it was true," Luc assured.

She looked ashamed. "I'm sorry. I'm not myself today."

The guys glanced at each other, perplexed. "…It's okay," Adam said awkwardly.

"Well, I kind of noticed you weren't your usual cheerful, chatty self," Cameron said.

"Yeah. I'm letting my earlier classes get to me," Annie sighed.

"What is it about the classes that's bothering you?" Adam asked.

"The people in the classes."

"Do me and Luc need to go bash some heads?" Adam said, thinking some guys were picking on her.

Annie laughed. "Thank you for the generous offer, but no. It's simply their obnoxious swearing and such that makes me fume. Typical high school boy talk."

Luc shrugged. "What can we say? Boys will be boys."

"That's your excuse for _everything_," Cameron said pointedly.

"No. It's more like 'Luc will be Luc'," Annie said jokingly.

"Unfortunately."

"And Cam will be Cam, 'unfortunately'," Luc said.

"Oh, Adam," Annie sighed amusedly. "Daydreaming again, I see."

Adam jumped, swiveling his head away from Karisa. "What?"

They all grinned or smirked at him.

"Oh just…shut up," Adam growled, glaring at the table and blushing on the unscarred side of his face.

* * *

In College Comp, Karisa and Adam sat next to each other, ending up being partners for proofreading each other's papers for the week. Adam had no problem reading Karisa's handwriting and didn't really need to change anything grammar or spelling wise; Her paper was already perfect. Karisa on the other hand…

"Uh, Adam?" she said, holding up his paper. "Sorry again, but what is this symbol here?"

"'And'," Adam replied. "See, it kinda looks like a plus sign…"

"Oh." She smiled. "You're typing this paper, right?"

"Yeah, of course. I'd be saving Mr. Hall all of _this_ trouble." He waved at his paper dramatically.

Karisa laughed. "Is my paper turning out alright?"

"Pssh, yeah," Adam replied. "It's perfect. You don't even _need_ a proofreader."

Her cheeks shone pink as she smiled meekly. "Thanks."

He found himself staring at her before she turned to him again to ask what word had become a product of his chicken scratch. He coughed, embarrassed, and looked away while she grinned at his reaction and resumed what she had turned to him for.

Next period in Pre-Calc, they sat next to each other again. Yet again, while Adam worked slowly on the assigned problems, Karisa breezed right through them, causing Adam to gaze at her in amazement.

"How are you getting a problem done in record time?" he whispered. "Aren't you getting carpal tunnel writing that fast?"

Karisa tried to resist giggling too loudly at his apparent wonder. "I just get math. Why? Are you struggling?"

"You can say that."

"Here." She moved her desk a bit closer to his. "I'll help you." She looked at his work and grimaced as she turned his paper different ways. "You're work is all jumbled up. Where's number one?"

He pointed toward the top of the page as he muttered a "sorry".

"Okay, well, first you did this wrong…"

Karisa fixed what problems he finished so far while pointing out what he did wrong. Adam couldn't help but be in some ways mortified at how many were incorrect. Thankfully, some weren't, but there weren't enough to lessen the urge to want to hide his face from her.

"You know," Adam was finally able to utter through her thorough examination of his work, "I don't really get much of what I'm doing wrong."

"So I've been blathering about stuff that doesn't even make sense to you? You could have said something earlier!" She was definitely amused.

He could only look sheepish.

She glanced at the clock. "Well, I'll try to help you tomorrow and try and make things easier. We only got two minutes."

"Thanks for trying anyway. You lasted longer than Cameron."

"Who?"

"Oh, the, uh, kid you thought I was using as a spy."

"Oh! Right, he's in my next hour." She let out a laugh. "What do you mean I lasted longer than him?"

"He got very impatient with me. He was always like, '_How can you NOT GET IT?'_" Adam mimicked Cameron's voice rather badly, which made Karisa cackle loudly. Her continuous laughter had a melodious ring to it, and he wanted to make her laugh more just so he could hear that again.

_Beeeep!_

"I'll see you, Adam," she said, still in a loose fit of giggles as she walked to the door.

"Bye, Karisa," he replied rather dreamily as he watched her join the flow of students in the crowded hallway.

* * *

Adam couldn't help but be in a good mood—though his last hour always put him in a good mood. Surrounding students noticed as they kept glancing at him curiously. Adam finally realized that he had a smile on his face after the corners of his mouth starting hurting. He massaged them to try and relax them, but a smile crept back when he thought of Karisa.

At his locker, he was still daydreaming, until Cameron and Annie came up to him, chattering.

"Is it really required in that class to give your baby a name?" Cameron was saying.

"No, it's not," Annie replied. "But I wanted to."

"Then at _least_ give the doll a decent name."

"Chip _is_ a decent name!" Annie cried. "It's one that screams innocence and adorability."

"What are you talking about?" Adam dared to ask.

"I have Parenting last hour," Annie explained, "and over the weekend we are all supposed to take care of a baby doll." She lifted a baby carrier in her left hand which held a fake baby with painted blonde hair and baby blue clothes that indicated that it was a boy.

"And you named it Chip?" Adam asked.

"Yes," Annie said, standing straighter. "It is a boy after all."

"But it's a doll."

"They actually have parts that show whether it's a boy or girl, and we got to choose what one we wanted."

"So this doll actually has a…"

Annie sighed, knowing what was coming. "Yes, it does."

As expected, Adam burst out laughing, and Cameron couldn't help but chuckle a little.

Annie shook her head and rolled her eyes. "If you guys would care to compose yourselves and realize how immature laughing about this is, I would like to go home before the baby starts electronically crying, because it does so randomly every hour."

"Okay, okay," Adam was able to breathe out through laughs.

"Yes, lead the way, _Mrs._ Edwards," Cameron said with mock politeness as he continued to smile foolishly from his own laughter.

Annie Edwards did, but not without growling in an annoyed manner and striding down the hall speedily, walking quite fast in her irritation for her short legs, to the surprise of both the guys, who struggled to keep up.

"You should be a power walker or something," Adam commented, breathing unexpectedly hard when they reached Luc's car. "I had to run a couple times to keep up."

Annie turned around after setting her baby doll on top of the trunk and smiled at him, previous irritation vanishing as usual; she can never stay angry for long. "Thanks. Did I give you two a good workout?"

"I already _had_ P.E.," Cameron muttered, finally getting his breathing down to normal, not being as fit as Adam.

"Where's Luc?" Adam asked.

"Most likely with that girl, Charlotte," Annie said. "He's been doing this for a while now, keeping us waiting while he flirts a little while longer with her."

"It's quite considerate of him, isn't it?" Cameron said, his words dripping with sarcasm.

Adam heard a muffled song play, and Annie pulled out her phone from her jacket pocket, her jaw dropping as she read the text.

"Luc says we have to find another ride," she said, becoming aggravated again. "He wants to drive Charlotte home today."

Cameron looked like he was about to blow, "The pompous, inconsiderate, conceited—"

"I could drive you guys home," Adam offered, staying calm and cool throughout the entire exchange.

Annie blinked. "You would do that?"

"Well, yeah. I'm not just gonna leave you here."

Annie and Cameron exchanged surprised looks. "That would be great, Adam," she said. "Thanks!"

"No problem," Adam replied, a tad uncomfortable from their shock at his offer.

Annie got in front while Cameron slid into the backseat. He made a face as he saw pop cans and water bottles along with old gym clothes and a pair of running shoes strewn all over the floor and seat: He kept his bag on his lap.

"Um, sorry it's messy back there," Adam apologized.

"I'll cope," came Cameron's slightly sickened reply.

"You can move stuff over if it's bothering you."

"I'd rather not."

Annie grinned, trying to suppress her laughter as Adam reversed and took the back way not clogged by retreating student drivers stopped at the light to get onto the main road.

"You still live on James, right?" Adam asked Annie.

"Um, yeah," Annie replied, letting out a few of her stifled laughs. "You would've heard if we had moved. And it's not like it's been that long since you've been over; You were there for Thanksgiving."

"Oh. Right," he said, glad he had an excuse to avoid her eye contact as he stared at the road.

He didn't speak until he pulled up in the driveway of her two-story but yet humble abode.

"Oh good!" she said, still amused. "You remember what house I live in!"

"Bye, Annie," was all Adam said, looking a little aggravated.

"Bye, Adam." She stuck her head back in. "Bye, Cameron."

Cameron only nodded in farewell, still wary of his surroundings and keeping an eye on the water bottle that kept rolling toward his foot.

Adam watched him. "Do you wanna move to the front?"

"Oh. Yes, I do." Cameron got out of the backseat rather quickly and was sitting in shotgun in a second.

"Where do you live?"

"On Delaware between Campbell and Fairlane."

"Alright, easy enough."

While they were driving, there was that same some awkward silence that was usually brought up between the two. Even with Luc it was never like this, mostly because he was pretty full of energy and optimism while Cameron can be negative and disapproving a vast majority of the time. But Adam thought of the question that he had been wondering recently:

"Can you drive yet?"

Cameron seemed to freeze. "Why?"

Adam shrugged. "Just wondering."

Cameron eased his tense shoulders with a sigh. "No. I can't."

"Have you taken your driving test yet?"

"Yes. Six times to be exact. I've had my permit for more than two years."

Adam mouthed in astonishment, _Six times!_ "What keeps making you fail?"

Cameron stared sullenly out of the windshield. "My nerves."

Adam pouted his lips thoughtfully; He could understand that.

"You know, it's quite mortifying when your overconfident and narcissistic brother passes the driving test on the first try when you can pass every other test handed to you _except_ the one that's most recognized as 'the most important test to man', because you're not a _man_ until you have your license." Cameron crossed his arms and sighed angrily through his nose. "It's completely humiliating."

"You can't be good at everything. No one is." Adam glanced at him. "You know what I do when I'm driving?"

Cameron looked at him. "What?"

"I relax. I'm more composed behind the wheel when I'm relaxed. I think you just need to shake off all that stress you carry around with you all the time."

"How can I _relax_ when the driving instructor makes me feel pressured and insecure about what I'm doing?" Cameron cried.

"Ignore all that," Adam enforced. "Just focus on what you're doing; check your mirrors constantly, keep your eyes on the road, and over-exaggerate when you're looking both ways at a light. They're picky about that."

"But I _do_ that!"

"If you did it the right way, you would have passed and most likely have your own car by now, right? I'm sure you have the money."

"Of course I do! 'But why have a car if you can't drive it?', as my parents say. I still can't believe Luc had the money, because it seemed to have popped out of nowhere. But, yet again, I can't believe he got his license before me, so why should I be surprised at that?"

"Maybe you can ask him how he passed and hear how he did it," Adam suggested.

Cameron let out a sarcastic laugh. "I don't ask my brother for advice."

"Did he ever ask _you _for advice?"

"Not advice—_favors_, most of them to not tell mom or dad about whatever he did wrong or inappropriately, or to 'cover' for him."

"This advice could be his giving-back. I'm sure he wouldn't mind returning the favor if you ask him."

They were now sitting in front of his red brick and stone house that was also two-story and suggested a little higher than middle class. New York suburbs are like that.

Cameron remained silent as he continued to stare out the windshield and avoid Adam's eye contact.

"I think you're gonna have to shallow your pride," Adam said.

Cameron pursed his lips, frustrated.

"You know, I tried to give you advice but you don't like it so you're gonna have to ask Luc," Adam continued as Cameron carried on being unspoken. "I actually think you'll earn some respect if you ask him for advice. He might not think you're such of a stuck-up."

Cameron looked at him then. "He says I'm a stuck-up? _I'm_ the stuck-up one?"

"Guess you have something in common, huh?" Adam said for a laugh, but failing when Cameron still appeared livid. "You _can_ act superior once in a while."

Cameron just stared at him.

"Look," Adam said hurriedly, getting back to the point. "Think about passing your driving test. Be a man and ask him." After another silent response from Cameron, Adam added, "You guys are both kinda stubborn too."

"Fine," Cameron muttered, wanting to prove him wrong. "I'll ask him."

"Tell me about it tomorrow," Adam said as Cameron got out.

Cameron looked back, sighed and said, "Thanks. For the ride and…advice."

"I'll do it again whenever you need either."

Cameron mirrored Adam's small smile and walked to his house.

Adam drove away, and as he looked in the rearview mirror, he saw his scars again for what seemed like the first time in ages. He had completely forgotten about them since talking to Karisa. He had felt normal for that first time helping the others too, and it felt really good. To forget about his burns was a first since he obtained them, and he wanted to continue forgetting his deformity and what separated him from society. For the first time, the wall between him and the world had vanished and he could really observe and interact with others. He wanted more of that feeling, and he felt it could only get better from here.

For the first time, everything was going _right_.

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry for the delay again! :S I tried to get it done quickly but…oh well. I'll try to be swifter with upcoming chapters, but stories in this section are pretty great and I had to read them. :)

So Karisa and Adam are talking again! Hurrah! I know it's different from the ending of the last chapter where Adam was going to talk to Karisa at lunch the next day, but I changed that because I thought her approaching him about the misunderstanding would be much better and make Adam seem more of an honorable man to Karisa.

Yeah, Luc's pretty love-struck at this point with Charlotte. :) I plan on making a spin-off of this story about Luc and Charlotte's time in their class and how their encounters go, but that's going to be after this one, just to give you guys a heads-up. It's too much of a fun prospect to resist writing. X-)

I liked this little part between Adam and Cameron. Finally, a good conversation between them, and a revealing one at that! To fail the driving test seemed like a good contrast for Cameron's character, the usual A+ student all around. It is determined as the most important test to any high schooler, as having a license symbolizes freedom to teens. To Luc, it comes naturally, as I can see him completely relaxed, calm and cool behind the steering wheel, while Cameron on the other hand, would easily crack under the pressure of the driving instructor and the fact that he's controlling a car that's moving with other vehicles pass him on either side. Everyone has a weakness, and I think this is the perfect one for Cameron.

My undying gratitude goes to all you continue to read faithfully and review! Speaking of reviewing, I would love some feedback if you would care to do that. I would love some more criticism and I enjoy reading it more than you know. :)

I bid thee _adieu_!

~Annabeth Snicket


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